December
18, 2003
1. U study says on-campus stadium
is feasible
2. Sun Bowl fan tour
3. Spirit of giving is alive at the U
4. UMM students studying senior care facilities
5. Bring out the pharmacy textbook
6. Making a case for child welfare
7. Holiday hazards for your pets
8. Direct support training: toward a national
standard
9. U of M Happenings
10. Links
Editor’s note: eNews will
not be published on Thursday, January 1,
because
of the New
Year holiday. You will receive the next
issue on Thursday, January 8. Happy Holidays!
UNEWS
U
study says on-campus stadium is feasible
A new University of Minnesota study concludes
that a new, on-campus stadium for Gopher
football may be feasible. The study, released
December 8, is part of a broader effort by
University officials to examine options for
a future home for Gopher football.
The stadium would be built to allow
for a total seating capacity of 80,000
and include a 30,000-square-foot indoor
club, a hall of fame, team facilities,
media facilities, and rehearsal and
storage space for the 300-member University
Marching Band. |
The study suggests that a 50,000-seat, open-air
stadium could be built northeast of Williams
and Mariucci arenas on the Twin Cities campus
in Minneapolis. The projected construction
cost is $180 million; another $42 million
for site preparations and infrastructure
improvements brings the total project cost
to an estimated $222 million.
University president Bob Bruininks describes
the stadium plan as “modest” by
current standards and noted that it is based
on an analysis of the local sports market.
The stadium would be built to allow for a
total seating capacity of 80,000 and include
a 30,000-square-foot indoor club, a hall
of fame, team facilities, media facilities,
and rehearsal and storage space for the 300-member
University Marching Band. There would also
be two outdoor plazas for pregame and other
non-game-day events.
“This is a fantastic facility that
could be wonderful for our program and our
fans,” says
athletics director Joel Maturi. “We
believe that an on-campus stadium is the
best option out there.”
University officials stress that any stadium
project would be substantially funded privately
and that the feasibility study is an important
first step, but a decision has not been made
to build a new stadium.
“We are first and foremost an academic
institution,” says
Bruininks. “We are going to take these
recommendations to our communities to get
ideas and feedback, and we will consult carefully
with Minnesota’s leaders.”
The U’s lease at the Hubert H. Humphrey
Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis expires
at the end of the 2011 football season, and
a new Gopher stadium would take an estimated
four to five years to complete.
To learn more about the feasibility study
or for President Bruininks’s remarks
at the December 8 press conference, see www.umn.edu/stadium.
--University of Minnesota News Service
Sun
Bowl fan tour
The University of Minnesota Alumni
Association is sponsoring the Official Bowl
Tour for fans who want to spend New
Year’s Eve cheering for the Gopher
football team at the Wells Fargo Sun Bowl
in El Paso, Texas.
The tour package includes airfare, lodging,
and Gopher fan events. To learn more about
it or for information about bus tour and
airfare-only options, see www.alumni.umn.edu/bowl.
Gopher
fans planning to goto
the Sun Bowl are strongly
encouraged to buy tickets
through the Gopher Athletics Ticket Office
instead of through the Sun Bowl organizers
or Ticketmaster. Purchasing a ticket
through
the U will generate more revenue for
the Gopher athletics
department, and it will
also ensure that you get a seat in the
Gopher fan section.
This will be the U’s fourth appearance
in a bowl game in the past five seasons,
marking the first time in school history
that a Gopher team has accomplished this
feat. The Gopher football team finished
the regular season 9-3 overall. It will
play against the Oregon Ducks (8-4) at
the Sun Bowl
.
For more information about tickets or to
buy your ticket, see http://www.gophersports.com or call the Athletics Ticket Office at
612-624-8080 or 1-800-U-GOPHER.
--University of Minnesota Alumni Association
Editor’s note: The University
of Minnesota Bookstore has commemorative
Gopher
Sun Bowl T-shirts for sale; click
here.
Return to top
Spirit of
giving is alive at the U
In October and November 2003, the University of Minnesota
community opened up their checkbooks and closets to help those less
fortunate.
The 2003
Community Fund Drive raised about $950,000 and a new event--Winter
Warmth for U--resulted in four busloads of donated clothing.
President
Robert Bruininks
holds a check representing
this year's total
raised: $950,381.06. |
“The Community Fund Drive makes a powerful difference in the lives of
Minnesotans,” says Terri Anthony, president of Community Health
Charities.
“And in the midst of a challenging economic landscape,
U of M employees contributed mightily to support the important issues
facing our community, including health, human services, and affordable
housing.”
The drive is an annual tradition organized by University faculty and
staff. Each year, about 250 employees volunteer to assist with the fund-raiser
by organizing college- or department-level activities. This year, the
drive raised $950,381.06, which was distributed to several Minnesota
charitable organizations.
The Winter Warmth for U clothing drive for Twin Cities children and families,
was conceived by two University students, Surbhi Madia and John Barber.
The two-and-a-half week drive collected donations of new and gently used
clothing from residence halls, student housing near campus, and a Coffman
Memorial Union location.
A University Campus Circulator bus made three trips to drop off the donations
to Pillsbury United Communities, and a fourth trip would have been necessary
had it not been for the KDWB radio station truck. Seeing that the drive
had exceeded expectations, station representatives who were covering
the event offered the students the services of their truck.
Return
to top
UMM
students studying senior care facilities
Over the past year, a number
of older residents in the west central
Minnesota
town of Milan were forced to move because
of a lack of senior housing options
in their community. Two students from
the University of Minnesota, Morris
(UMM), want to help keep area residents
in familiar surroundings.
Senior Jeff Janca and freshman Amanda
Jacobson have been working with the
city of Milan and Ben Winchester, coordinator
of data analysis and research at UMM’s
Center for Small Towns, to study the
feasibility of building a senior care
facility in Milan. The city has identified
a vacant building on Main Street that
it would like to convert to an assisted
living facility, complete with bedrooms,
a community dining room, and scheduled
recreational activities. The students’ research
will include a marketing study, analysis
of code and staff requirements, facility
layout, and ownership and financing
options.
Janca
and Jacobson began their
project this fall by
visiting different types
of senior care facilities in
small
towns and talking with people
involved with seniors.
They examined how communities
in west central Minnesota such
as Sunburg,
Glenwood, and Starbuck operated
and managed their facilities. “This
project has been a major wake-up
for us as far as how
much demand and overall
need there is for senior care,” says
Janca.
In mid January, the students will survey
the senior residents of Milan to gauge
their level of interest in an assisted-living
facility and to determine the types
of services in which they would be
interested.
“We hope the research can provide our
city and other small towns with the
information they need to create senior
care facilities for residents,” says
Ron Anderson, Milan’s mayor. “Having
the option to remain in your
own town is important because
the familiarity
of family, friends, and your
home is important in your later
years.”
The students will present their
research and survey findings
at a community
meeting in the spring. Their
project is supported by the Center
for Small
Towns and the U’s Center
for Urban and Regional Affairs
(CURA) on
the Twin Cities campus.
To learn more about the Center
for Small Towns at UMM, see http://www.centerforsmalltowns.org/.
For information about CURA, see http://www.cura.umn.edu/.
--Jessica
Beyer, community program assistant
in the Center for Small Towns.
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Bring
out the pharmacy textbook
Are all echinacea or gingko products created
equal? No, it appears they are not. According
to a University of Minnesota study, when
we self-medicate with herbal products,
we may unknowingly ingest ingredients and
dosages substantially different from those
that are recommended.
According to a University of Minnesota
study, when we self-medicate with herbal
products, we may unknowingly ingest
ingredients and dosages substantially
different from those that are recommended. |
School of Public Health researchers, led
by professor Judith Garrard, surveyed 20
retail stores and found 880 products for
10 of the most commonly purchased herbs--echinacea,
St. John’s wort, ginkgo biloba, garlic,
saw palmetto, ginseng, goldenseal, aloe,
Siberian ginseng, and valerian. They examined
the labels of these products and discovered
wide variations in the ingredients as well
as in the recommended daily doses for the
same herbs.
The researchers also found that the ingredients
for each herb differed in many respects
from textbook benchmarks for ingredients
and dosages. Specifically, 37 percent of
the 880 products were either not consistent
with scientific research or had insufficient
information on the labels for the researchers
to decide.
“The results of this field study
illustrate some of the difficulties the
public faces
in choosing among myriad products of commonly
used herbs,” says Garrard. “Because
of the lack of clinical trials and outcome
studies, health care providers face an
even more daunting task in advising patients
about the responsible use of herbal preparations
and other dietary supplements.”
The study is published in the October 27,
2003, issue of Archives of Internal
Medicine.
--Academic Health Center
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Making a
case for child welfare
The Child Welfare Research Agenda for the State of Minnesota,
codeveloped by the University of Minnesota, is the state’s first-ever
compilation of the most pressing issues related to Minnesota children
and families.
The agenda, created in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Human
Services (DHS), presents research priorities and descriptions of ongoing
child welfare studies in Minnesota. It focuses on seven child welfare
categories--program planning and administration, prevention of child
maltreatment, child protection, child and family services, out-of-home
care, reunification, and adoption or relative custody.
“The
aim of the project was to show what
is most needed [when establishing
research projects],” says Susan
Wells, the U’s Gamble-Skogmo
Professor in Child Welfare and Youth
Policy. |
“The aim of the project was to show what is most needed [when establishing
research projects],” says Susan Wells, the U’s Gamble-Skogmo
Professor in Child Welfare and Youth Policy. Ultimately, the agenda
will help ensure child welfare research conducted in Minnesota better
meets
the needs of the community, she adds.
“This is a tremendous step forward,” says María Gómez,
assistant commissioner of Children and Family Services for DHS, “not
only because [the U and DHS] are working together on behalf of children,
but because we will be clearly focusing on the same issues.”
For a copy of the Child Welfare Research Agenda for the State of
Minnesota,
see http://ssw.che.umn.edu/gamble-skogmo/GS_CWRA.htm.
To learn more about the U’s School of Social Work, see http://ssw.che.umn.edu/.
--University of Minnesota News Service
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to top
Holiday
hazards for your pets
’Tis the season to
be jolly, and your pets may enjoy it
as much as you do.
But according to the University of
Minnesota Extension Service, pet encounters
with certain holiday treats and decorations
may dampen the merry-making and call
for the vet. Here are tips to keep
in mind.
-
Keep
pets away from alcohol and chocolate,
which can be life-threatening.
If you have company, ask them not to
feed
your dog or cat and remind them
to place food and drinks out of your
pet’s
reach. If your pet staggers,
loses coordination, or is sleeping so soundly
during or after a party that
you can’t
wake it, take it to the vet immediately.
- Holiday turkeys and hams can make your
pet sick. Dogs are especially prone
to severe pancreatitis from eating
foods they are not accustomed to.
-
Be careful with poinsettias. Although
not severely toxic, poinsettias
can give your cat an upset stomach and
cause some vomiting. Give the kitty
wheatgrass to chew on. This may
keep it happy and away from your houseplants.
- If
you have a Christmas tree, secure it
to a wall to prevent it from
falling over. Cats like to climb it while dogs
prefer to rub against it. Avoid
edible and breakable ornaments. Tape light
cords against the tree or a
wall, so they aren’t lying on the
floor for Spot and Puff to
chew on.
- Avoid
tinsel altogether if you have young,
playful pets. They’ll
see it as a moving, irresistible
toy.
- Give
your pets plenty of attention and exercise
during the holiday season.
This may lessen the chances
that they’ll
get into mischief.
- Check with your veterinarian for more
suggestions.
Edited from original
material by Info-U.
To learn more
about this University
of Minnesota Extension
Service program,
see http://www.extension.umn.edu/info-u.
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to top
Direct
support training: toward a national
standard
What does it take to properly
care for someone with developmental disabilities?
You can find out, or at least get a sense,
through the College of Direct Support.
This online program, developed by the U’s
Research and Training Center on Community
Living (RTC), is the first national course
for preparing those who support people
with developmental disabilities.
The program is highly interactive--combining
multimedia and text on the computer screen--and
offers 55 hours of instruction. Lesson
plans delve into such topics as maltreatment
of vulnerable adults and children, community
inclusion, and direct support professionalism.
For Minnesotans who must care for a developmentally
disabled family member, or who have an
interest in the field, a mere $25 will
buy you those 55 hours. RTC director Charlie
Lakin says the program is innovative in
its attempt to standardize the way all
direct support professionals are trained.
“The role of direct support professionals
does not have standard academic training,” explains
Lakin. “Typically, those who care
for people with developmental disabilities
are trained by the agencies they work for.”
Lakin, who was involved in developing the
program, adds that the College of Direct
Support is unique because “it’s
built on scientific analysis, on content
of jobs that people in direct support have,
and on established code of ethics.” Another
plus is that it’s online, allowing
the program to better reach its target
audience
“[Direct support professionals] are a very
hard group to train because they work odd
hours and could be full-time or part-time,” says
Lakin. “This program was designed
with that in mind. Lessons are 40 to 50
minutes each, and people can move through
them at their own pace over several days
if they wish [because of a bookmark feature].”
Since this program made its debut in May,
state agencies have been jumping on the
bandwagon and providing the program to
their direct support staff. The program
is recognized by five states and the District
of Columbia, with contracts pending in
four additional states and ten other states
expressing strong interest.
To learn more about the College of Direct
Support or the Research and Training Center
on Community Living, which is housed in
the Institute on Community Integration
on the Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis,
see http://rtc.umn.edu.
HAPPENINGS
Skip
among the evergreens
An indoor winter wonderland
complete with twinkling
white lights and the
sounds of chirping
birds is what you’ll
get when you visit
the “Festival
of Trees: A Bird Sanctuary” at
Minnesota Landscape
Arboretum in Chanhessen
through Sunday, January
4. The event is free
with gate admission
($5 adults; free for
members and children
under 18). For hours
or directions, see www.arboretum.umn.edu or
call 952-443-1400.
Dissecting synchronicity
What causes the moon
to orbit Earth? Why
did hundreds of Japanese
children have seizures
watching an episode
of Pokemon? Why do
female roommates sometimes
find their menstrual
periods occurring at
the same time? Find
out at “Sync:
The Emerging Science
of Spontaneous Order,” a
public lecture hosted
by the U’s Institute
for Mathematics and
its Applications on
Wednesday, January
7, at 7 p.m. in 100
Smith Hall on the Twin
Cities campus in Minneapolis.
To learn more, see http://www.ima.umn.edu/public-lecture/2003-04/strogatz/index.html.
The evolution of a
designer
At what point does
a student of graphic
design become a force
to be reckoned with?
The “FORM\INFORM” exhibit
at the Goldstein Museum
on the Twin Cities
campus in St. Paul
features past and present
works of several successful
graphic designers (with
an essay connecting
their school and professional
work). The exhibit
runs through Sunday,
January 4. For general
information, see http://goldstein.che.umn.edu/exhibitions.html.
Women in the U.S. Senate
Photojournalist Melina
Mara has captured the
presence of women in
the Senate in 38 photographs
on display at the “Changing
the Face of Power:
Women in the U.S. Senate” exhibit
at The Humphrey Forum
on the Twin Cities
campus in Minneapolis.
The exhibit, through
Friday, February 20,
is accompanied by videotaped
interviews conducted
by White House correspondent
Helen Thomas.
Return
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LINKS
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